USB cables?

[uncleangreen]

Hi guys!

I'm new to the scene and have almost finished my first project. I've taken my 4 year old, £35, Aukey TKL mechanical keyboard and desoldered the outemu blues and resoldered some lubed gateron black (and lubed the stabs of course). I also added some thick foam beneath the PCB and changed out the keycaps and it feels incredible!

The last thing that I would like to do is get a nice cable - it currently has a plain black USB cable that is attached to the PCB with a 4 pin header but I can't find the type of cable that I need anywhere. I'd like to swap out the long, attached black USB cable for a USB C connector and then purchase a nice braided cable.

What I need to know is A) is this possible and B) what the hell is the cable connector called that I need to search for? It's driving me mad!

Thanks!

[TK0]

B) Maybe it's a JST connector. If you could, send some pics, it would be easier to identify.

A) It is possible if you want to DYI it yourself; since you already know how to solder, it shouldn't be difficult. You would need a USB C module and cables to connect the JST header to the module. You could also DYI the cables yourself, if you can find a paracord with a color you like. There are tons of tutorials on youtube.

[Leslieann]

The type-C standard is a mess.
Technically type-C is just a connector but along with it comes a bunch of data and power standards, not all of which are standardized or backwards compatible.

If you just want a type-C connector at the board (dongle) that's easy enough, I did this on my Filco by cutting and splicing in a Type-C charging extension, leaving a 4inch dongle hanging out the back (rather than an aircraft connector). You can get nice ones, mine is small and nicely wrapped. This works fine if you use a type-C to type-A cable to connect it to your pc, however, if I ever want to connect it to a type-C port it may have problems due to how Type-C effectively breaks the old USB standards. It's supposed to be backwards compatible, but it's up to laptop and desktop makers to comply, which is actually optional. To make it work on pretty much any computer using type-C you need more than just a charging extension but instead a cable designed for data transfer, not just power (these tend to be usb 2.0 wired) and it should be data on both sides (not as common as you would think), AND you need to either splice in some resistors between a few wires or use an adapter that does it for you otherwise some computers will not recognize it. Apple and Dell being some of the worst for this.

[jcoffin1981]

Wow I did not know all that.

[Findecanor]

I'd like to swap out the long, attached black USB cable for a USB C connector and then purchase a nice braided cable.

What you're looking for is called a "USB C breakout" board.

But you would also make sure that the one you get is a good type, and which fits in your case.
There are lots of different types out there, of different sizes. The one you get should have two small resistors on board, but no chips. It should have solder points for D+, D-, VBUS and GND -- which is what a keyboard uses.
Many of these will also break out CC1 and CC2 and maybe two more but you won't need to connect those.
If there are many more pins then continue looking for another board that is smaller and/or easier to solder. The best boards also have mounting holes for bolting to the case.

You would also need to find the pinout of the JST socket. On some keyboards the pins are printed on the PCB, but if not, things could be more difficult.
You could probably find out the pinout from the old USB cable somehow. I would suggest buying a loose USB-A socket that has the pins exposed, so that you could try them against the JST plug or pins or traces on the keyboard PCB with a multimeter in "continuity mode"